North Korea Announces H Bomb Test, U.S. Declares Shenanigans

Condemnation and raised eyebrows on NK nuke test - “The United States and other global powers sharply condemned North Korea on Wednesday, vowing to punish it for conducting a fourth nuclear weapons test. The Obama administration and nuclear experts moved quickly to question North Korea’s claims that it had tested a hydrogen bomb, a massively powerful thermonuclear device that would mark a major advance in Pyongyang’s weapons ability. The United States and Japan called for an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council,” write Karen DeYoung and Anna Fifield for the Washington Post.

--“Any additional pressure on North Korea — already the most severely sanctioned country in the world — would have to involve major action by China, its largest trading partner and supplier of much of its foreign aid. But Beijing has been reluctant to risk action that could seriously destabilize North Korea, sending hordes across its border, perhaps leaving nuclear weapons unsecured, and ceding a strategic bulwark against the powerful U.S., Japanese and South Korean military alliance in the northern Pacific.” Get the full story here. http://wapo.st/1OMJiKh

Tweet - @NTI_WMD: Where are #NorthKorea's #nuclear facilities? Take a look w/ our interactive map: bit.ly/1Y86QkW

Don’t get too alarmed - “The bad news is North Korea just tested another nuclear weapon, in flagrant violation of the global norm against such tests observed by all other nations since 1998. The good news is that whatever their intentions, they do not appear to have succeeded with the test. Contrary to the global headlines generated by their announcement, North Korea does not have an hydrogen bomb,” writes Joe Cirincione, president of the Ploughshares Fund for CNN.

--“Early indications are that the test had a yield of about 6 kilotons, or the explosive force of 6,000 tons of TNT. That is a smaller yield than North Korea's last test. Even a failed H-bomb test would have resulted in an explosion of 10 to 50 kilotons. This is likely why White House spokesman Josh Earnest said Wednesday that data from monitoring stations is ‘not consistent with North Korean claims of a successful hydrogen bomb test.’ North Korea may have been testing something in between the A-bomb and H-bomb, a ‘boosted’ weapon. This basically adds a small amount of tritium, a hydrogen isotope, to an atomic bomb assembly.” Get the full story here. cnn.it/1JuXITt

See also- Joe Cirincione discusses North Korean H-bomb test claims on The Rachel Maddow Show. on.msnbc.com/1O69z9m

Tweet - Close the door on nuclear testing forever. My letter at @GlobeOpinion:@WilliamLambersbit.ly/22N9uiy

Navy gets the go-ahead on Ohio replacement - “The Defense Department has given the U.S. Navy the green light to begin entertaining proposals for the service’s next ballistic missile submarine, an effort that could cost nearly $350 billion over its lifetime. A Pentagon spokeswoman told Bloomberg on Tuesday that Frank Kendall, the agency’s top weapons buyer, told the Navy it could release a request for proposals for the development phase of 12 Ohio-class replacement subs”, writes Martin Matishak for The Fiscal Times.

--“The fiscal 2015 defense policy bill authorized a special account for the SSBN(X) effort, dubbed the “National Sea-Based Deterrence Fund.” However, congressional appropriators have resisted the move, countering that a special account for the boats would set a bad precedent... Kendall has also derided the deterrence fund as a gimmick that does nothing to alleviate the budget pressures the department has been under the last several years. The first submarine is expected to be purchased in 2021, with an initial fund request coming in fiscal 2017.” Get the full story here. http://bit.ly/1PgZRi2

Battle lines drawn on Iran deal - “The House Foreign Affairs Committee on Jan. 7 is set to mark up legislation from Rep. Steve Russell, R-Okla., that would restrict the administration's ability to lift sanctions on Iranian financial institutions as called for under the Iran deal. Administration officials say the bill is a transparent attempt to derail the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA),” writes Julian Pecquet for Al-Monitor.

--“The bill would require the administration to certify that Iranian financial institutions have not knowingly helped fund Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, foreign terrorist organizations and several other entities before they can be removed from the Treasury Department's list of specifically designated nationals. The Iran deal requires that the United States cease its nuclear-related sanctions on those banks as part of its obligations under Annex II of the deal.” Read the full story here. bit.ly/1Zcf3HO

Tweet - @plough_shares: US #nuclearweapons targeted populations of Beijing, Moscow, Leningrad, East Berlin & Warsaw bit.ly/1QIOLIB

Corbyn reshuffles team based on nuclear attitudes - “Britain’s opposition party leader, Jeremy Corbyn, on Wednesday appointed a critic of the U.K.’s nuclear deterrent to a defence role in his top team... Corbyn’s shadow defence secretary Maria Eagle was moved to a new job as shadow culture secretary, which commentators have described as a demotion. The change is significant because Eagle’s replacement, member of parliament Emily Thornberry, is not an advocate for renewing Britain’s nuclear deterrent, Trident, while Eagle is in favour of retaining it,” writes Josh Lowe for Newsweek.

--“Prime Minister David Cameron wants to renew the system, while Corbyn has said he wants Britain to get rid of its nuclear arsenal, having spent much of his political life working with the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament pressure group, which appointed him to the role of Vice President in October 2015. By removing Eagle from her defence role, Corbyn may have avoided a clash on foreign and defence policy between himself and his team in the upcoming vote.” Read the full story here. http://bit.ly/1SCnQOi

Quick Hits:

--“Nuclear Arsenals Of The World: Who Owns What?” by Sky News. bit.ly/1JZuTcO

--“North Korea’s Ballistic Missile Submarine Program: Full Steam Ahead,” by 38 North. bit.ly/1UzlONd

Events:

--“Space Weapons and the Risk of Nuclear Exchange.” Featuring Mallory Stewart, U.S. Department of State; Gaurav Kampani, Atlantic Council; Nancy Gallagher, University of Maryland; and Joan Freese, US Naval War College. January 11 from 12:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.. Located at the Atlantic Council, 1030 15th Street NW, 12th Floor. RSVP online. bit.ly/1MVMORm

--“Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction: The Role of the U.S.-Japan Alliance.” Featuring Rose Gottemoeller, Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security, Ambassador Nobuyasu Abe, former Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations for Disarmament Affairs, Andrew Weber, former Assistant Secretary of Defense for Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological Defense Programs, and Narushige Michishita, Professor, National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies. Moderated by Vikram Singh. January 14, 2016, 1:30pm - 3:00pm. Located at the Center for American Progress, 1333 H St. NW, 10th Floor, Washington, D.C.. RSVP here. ampr.gs/1JwFaSN

--“Strategic Deterrent Forces: A Foundation for National Security." Featuring Cecil Haney, U.S. Strategic Command; Franklin Miller, The Sowcroft Group; Keith Payne, National Institute for Public Policy; and Thomas Karako. January 22 from 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, located at 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW, Second Floor Conference Room, Washington DC. RSVP by email at intlsecurity@CSIS.org. http://bit.ly/1Z5FIGd

--“Centrifuges, Sanctions and Security.” Featuring Paul Carroll of the Ploughshares Fund. January 27 from 6:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. at Dominican University, Caleruega Dining Hall, 50 Acacia Ave., San Rafael, CA. Dinner reservations required by Jan. 22. RSVP online.http://bit.ly/1IOuOh8